Cambridge's top companies and business people were honoured at our 2018 Business Excellence Awards.

Now in its 25th year, the awards are the region's premier celebration of business, with past winners including companies that have gone on to national and international success.

So who are this year's champions? Find out below.

Small business of the year: Somersault

Shortlisted: Biostrata, RXCelerate

Small business of the year 2018 Somersault

Video content is everywhere these days, you only have to look at the News website to see that. But the sheer volume of promotional films means it’s harder than ever to get noticed, which is where Somersault comes in.

The Sawston creative agency, which has worked with the likes of BAE Systems, Sport England and David Lloyd Health Clubs in the past, provides high quality promotional video content to clients in a range of sectors.

“A lot of our peers take a ‘hit and hope’ approach, and don’t put in the time and thought on how clients will achieve a return on investment,” says CEO Colin Miles. “We look at how we can achieve real business outcomes from our work.”

Turnover at Somersault was £1.25m last year, and the company is on course for £1.5m this year. Colin says the firm’s ambition is to become the number one digital creative agency in the world.

“Cambridge isn’t known as a heartland for creative companies, but we like to think we’re putting the city on the map as a new area of creativity,” he says.

Cambridge Judge High Growth Award: Cambridge Design Partnership

Cambridge Design Partnership, Cambridge Judge High Growth Business of the year 2018 (Image: Warren Gunn)

Tucked away in a development of converted barns in Toft, you might not be aware technology and product design firm Cambridge Design Partnership exists, but its work can be found in products from big names such as Avon, Dulux, and Pyrex.

“Most of our business comes from word-of-mouth,” says Mike Cane, one of the firm’s partners, who co-founded the business 20 years ago with the help of a loan from his dad. “Our clients are companies who have cut back on their R&D capability, or which are moving into new areas where they don’t have expertise. That’s when they come to us.”

It seems more and more people are knocking on CDP’s door, with the company having enjoyed 35 per cent growth in the last financial year. Mike says the company, which employs 120 people, has ambitious plans for the future, including the addition of an office on the East coast of the US, to complement its team in Palo Alto

“We’re focusing on accessing bigger customers, entering new markets and expanding the services we offer,” he says.

Presumably it will soon be time to pay dad back, too.

Barclays large business of the year: Aveva

Shortlisted: Horizon Discovery Group, Thorlabs

Aveva, Barclays large business of the year

When it was founded back in 1967, Cambridge University spin-out Aveva was known as the Ministry of Technology, a marvellous name which conjures up images of brilliant scientists working away in their labs on world-changing inventions.

The name may have changed since then but Aveva, which celebrated its 50 anniversary last year, remains at the cutting edge of innovation in its field, which is specialist computer-aided design software used in a wide range of industries, notably oil and gas.

Technology remains at the heart of the Aveva business, and its staff have embraced the virtual reality revolution, using the Microsoft Hololens headset for a programme to help clients train their staff to use new pieces of equipment.

Pure employer award: Genie Ventures

Shortlisted: CPS Building Services, CPL

Genie Ventures, Pure employer of the year (Image: Warren Gunn)

With a staff retention rate of more than 95 per cent, marketing and publishing firm Genie Ventures is obviously doing its bit to keep its, er, genies, happy.

“The key thing for us is that our staff feel trusted,” says Sarah Sutton, the company’s head of people development. “We have regular updates about how the company is doing, and everyone is trusted to work flexibly so their hours fit in with their lives.”

This forward thinking approach extends across the entire company, with a wide range of perks available in its central Cambridge office, while employees are encouraged to sign up to the Genie Academy where they can learn new skills. The company, which is behind brands such as broadband comparison site Broadband Genie, also has regular socials for its entire staff, and is working hard to ensure this culture is maintained as it grows.

“We’ve created an amazing place to work, and it’s my job to be a guardian of that,” Sarah says.

Cambridge BID independent retailer award: Millers Music

Giving away 21 pianos might not sound like the most credible of business plans for a music store, but this is what Cambridge’s Millers Music did last year.

The shop, which has been trading in the city in one guise or another for over 160 years, donated the instruments to an array of schools and institutions in the region following its Nocturne for 21 Pianos concert. A reworking of Chopin’s original Nocturnes, the concert saw 21 local young musicians play 21 pianos simultaneously in the grand surroundings of King’s College Chapel.

This is just one part of the company’s community work which underpins its relationship with the region’s musical community. Recent investments in its Sussex Street store include a new piano showroom, and while selling instruments is obviously a big money-earner, Millers’ Adele Scrivener says rental is also a popular option, especially for those on a budget.

Adele adds: “Buying an instrument is a big decision, and we focus on making it an experience coming into the shop.”

Hewitsons award for business innovation – Cydar

“Would you be comfortable with a surgeon placing this in your aorta?,” Cydar’s Dr James Gough asked our judges, waving around a medical instrument several feet long.

The thought of such a device entering your body is not for the faint-hearted (sorry), but guiding instruments is one of the biggest challenges faced by doctors since away from open surgery to more non-invasive techniques. At the moment, surgeons usually have to rely on a 2D X-ray view for guidance, but Cydar has come up with a system that combines this with 3D CT scan images. The firm’s cloud-based platform uses machine learning algorithms to map an individual patient’s anatomy and pinpoint the location of instruments.

“We’re the only people able to put high-performance cloud computing in the operating room,” says Cydar’s Rob Hague.

A spin-out from King’s College London, Cydar has been based in Barrington since 2014. With CE mark and FDA approval already secured, the company hopes to make an impact in the lucrative US market and beyond. Watch this space.

Allia Award for social entrepreneurship – Form the Future

Shortlisted: Levin Sources, The Edge Cafe

Allia award for social entrepreneurship winner 2018, Form the Future (Image: Warren Gunn)

What can we do about the skills crisis? It’s a question that has businesses in Cambridge and beyond constantly scratching their heads, but one that rarely results in any tangible action.

Fortunately, Form the Future is here to help. “We help young people learn about the world of work, so that they can take confident decisions about what is right for them,” says co-founder Michaela Esbach, and it turns out they’re rather good at it.

Through a range of experience days, mentorship and work experience programmes, Form the Future has helped introduce children at hundreds of schools to new careers.

Recently the company, which was co-founded by Esbach and Anne Bailey, has taken on the Cambridge Launchpad programme pioneered by the Marshall Group, which aims to get more young people interested in careers in STEM subjects. Thanks to Form the Future’s work, the scheme has been extended, with many of Cambridge’s biggest tech employers getting involved.

As well as increasing its work in the county, future plans could include rolling Form the Future out to other areas.

Price Bailey Business of the Year: Aveva

Aveva, Price Bailey business of the year 2018 (Image: Warren Gunn)

It’s been a terrific 12 months for Aveva, as one of Cambridge’s biggest and best-established employers continued to lead the way in its field.

Though the last few years haven’t been kind to the engineering software firm’s key markets, with sectors such as oil and gas suffering, Aveva has ridden out the storm and, with conditions now improving, has enjoyed a strong year, with its last interim results showing a 11.5 per cent increase in revenue and a 13 per cent profit bump.

Perhaps more importantly, the company has negotiated its complex merger with French firm Schneider Electric’s software business. The deal, which is classified as a reverse take-over, has been aborted twice previously, but was finally completed earlier this month, creating a company worth around £3bn.

The addition of Schneider adds to Aveva’s international feel, but the company’s Michael Halloran said: “Although we’re much an outward facing firm, our heart has always been in Cambridge.

“The next step for us is to become a FTSE 100 company – the merger will put us close to 150.”

BioMed Realty award for businessperson of the year: Darrin Disley

Darrin Disley, Biomed Realty business person of the year 2018

Darrin Disley is about to begin a new chapter in his career, but the outgoing Horizon Discovery Group CEO leaves the company in fine shape after a stellar 12 months.

From humble beginnings in the East End of London, the former professional footballer has become one of the Cambridge business scene’s most recognisable faces.

He joined Horizon, which provides tools and services for gene-editing companies, in 2007, growing the company quickly to the point where, in 2014, it floated on the AIM market, raising £68m at IPO, a record for a Cambridge life science business.

The last year has seen Horizon seal the £65m purchase of US competitor Dharmacon last year. Revenues have continued to rocket, and the company is set to better the impressive growth of 51 per cent recorded in 2016.

His departure from Horizon, announced last month, came as a surprise to many, and we will wait with baited breath to see where he pops up next.

MedImmune Award for Outstanding Contribution: Sir Gregory Winter

Sir Greg Winter has been at the heart of the Cambridge life sciences cluster for the last 30 years.

Co-founder of Cambridge Antibody Technology, his pioneering work with therapeutic monoclonal antibodies led to the humanisation of antibody therapies for the first time, and later the discovery of blockbuster drug Humira, which is used to treat arthritis.

CAT was, of course, sold to AstraZeneca in 2006, while another of Sir Greg’s companies, Domantis, was also acquired by a pharmaceutical giant in the form of GlaxoSmithKline. No wonder then, that many have high hopes for his latest start-up, Bicycle Therapeutics, which is developing a brand new class of small, chemically synthesised medicines, called Bicycle Peptides.

Since 2012, Sir Greg has been Master of Trinity College, and has been a driving force behind the renewal of Cambridge Science Park, which is owned by the college. A plethora of new buildings are springing up, including the Bradfield Centre co-working space, while plans are afoot for a £200m investment which will include five new buildings and a state-of-the-art biohub, providing space for early stage companies developing new therapies and medical technologies. Perhaps the next Humira will emerge from its labs.